Best VPN deals March 2025: Reliable coverage from just $1.99

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The world of VPN providers is one of the most competitive spaces in modern tech, meaning there's often a strong selection of freshly discounted VPN deals and promotions to tempt you over to their side of the digital security world. I've seen prices drop as low as $1.99 a month today.

These reliable VPNs (short for virtual private network) app services seriously improve your devices' privacy and security and help unlock cheaper, or even free, international streaming opportunities throughout the year.

VPN prices drop to their lowest levels with the longer-term plans. We rarely see VPN providers reduce the price on the single-month rolling contracts, but if you sign up for a year or more, the equivalent monthly price comes crashing down. Right now, we're talking discounts as high as 87%. Most also throw in extra months free.

If you're reading this article from outside the US, VPN sites linked on this page will show you the equivalent discounted price in your local currency.

Because you don't have all day, and I prefer cutting to the chase, I've decided to only cover VPN deals from the best VPN providers I've personally tested. I'm happy to recommend them as excellent products that I and members of my team still use regularly. Some of them are seriously cheap today, too. All come with a 30-day (or longer) money-back guarantee, so you're free to bag a refund if you're not getting what you need or if you just change your mind.

We've listed the lowest per-month US rates above. Below, you'll see the best value total plan prices for the bundles with extra details about what you're getting. Prices are usually displayed as effective 'per month' rates, but just be aware that you'll be charged upfront rather than once a month.

Top 5 best VPN deals in detail

• NordVPN - from $3.09 p/m
• See also: NordVPN review

The latest NordVPN deals on two-year plans cut prices by up to 77%. The one-year NordVPN deals are strong, too, with discounts going as high as 70%. Rolling one-month plans don't involve any discounts, though - which is usually the case across the board whenever we're checking for fresh VPN deals.

The 'Plus' and 'Complete' tiers of NordVPN include a password manager, ad blockers, malware protection, data breach scanners, and more.

The new 'Prime' tier adds a range of NordProtect features, such as identity, SSN and credit monitoring, and identity theft insurance, but even with a discount, the monthly fee jumps to $6.99 a month on a two-year deal.

The cheapest basic tier is plenty for most users who just want to keep their browsing private and do some international streaming. It's the one we'd recommend to most people, as you can get many of the items on the more expensive tiers as free apps or as features on your phone's operating system or laptop browser.

• Surfshark - from $1.99 p/m + 3 free months
• See also: Surfshark review

Looking for a cheaper VPN alternative? Surfshark is an excellent option. The two-year plan prices start from just $1.99 a month and include an extra three months free. This tier is the one I'd recommend for most people.

Dipping your toe in with a rolling one-month plan is much more expensive. Prices start at $15.45 a month, which is certainly on the higher end of rolling contracts for VPNs. So we'd advise picking up a two-year deal for the best savings. Remember, there's a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can get a full refund if the service isn't what you were hoping for.

The middle tier (Surfshark One) packs a few extra features for just a fraction more a month at $2.49. But if you look at the feature list above, you'll see that many of the extras are probably already built into your phone or laptop. Also, the masked email generator feature has been very hit-and-miss for me lately - setting up a burner Gmail account is much better, to be honest.

Surfshark One+ is worth considering for data removal services, especially if you're concerned about all the never-ending spam/junk mail making its way into your regular inbox. It's not perfect, but it can certainly help. We've reviewed this service independently, so head over to our Incogni review for more details.

• ExpressVPN - from $4.99 p/m + 4 months free
• See also: ExpressVPN review

• PIA VPN - from $2.19 p/m + 2 months free
• See also: PIA VPN review

• CyberGhost - from $2.19 p/m + 2 months free
• See also: CyberGhost VPN review

What about a free VPN?

Free VPNs usually have some sort of cost, some much more concerning than others. On the lighter side, we often find free VPNs extremely limited in their feature set and connection types or come with low data caps, making them useless if you want to do some overseas streaming, as video crunches through data in no time.

Free VPNs can often seriously hinder download speeds, often even making basic web browsing a slog. Combine this with the already atrocious speeds of some public or café WiFi (where you should absolutely use a VPN in this day and age), and you'll struggle to complete even the most basic of online work tasks.

We've also seen plenty just packed with ads. Some cluttering the screen, others with lengthy, unskippable videos when you try to switch the VPN on. If you've dabbled in mobile gaming, you'll know how frustrating this can be.

On the security and privacy side of things, we often find free VPNs aren't particularly upfront about their no-logs policy and don't offer up independent audit reports, which means you're at risk of all your data being collected by the free VPN provider to do with as they please, usually selling it to marketers. So, if you're tired of Google and Facebook doing this, a free VPN isn't going to be much better. And if you're really unlucky, they could be much worse.

That's because some particularly malicious VPN apps are basically a Trojan horse for all sorts of nasty malware, adware, or even ransomware. These digital nasties can invade your devices to harvest all your personal details and passwords and hack and hijack your personal accounts for everything from socials to banking. 

When do the best VPN deals appear?

November and December are the best times of year to grab the best VPN deals. Some begin in early November, but everyone generally seems to have their best price live by the Monday before Black Friday. The discounts usually involve a bit extra off the average monthly price on the longer deals like six, 12, or 24-month subscriptions - plus, you'll often see VPN providers throw in additional months for free.

Take 2024. We saw many discounted monthly rates from Black Friday continue through December - some have extended into January 2025, too. The only thing that's changed over this period for the brands on this page is the number of free months offered.

Prices didn't rise too much once these sales ended, though. You're looking at an extra 30-60 cents more a month at most or a decrease offered on the number of free months - nothing substantial enough to make you feel obligated to wait until the end-of-year sales come around again. These VPN services still like to offer significant discounts on longer plans all year round. We never see the single one-month rolling contract prices go down, though, and they're often more than double the monthly rate of the longer commitments. That's where the 30-45-day money-back guarantees come into play, though, if you're hesitant about signing up for longer subs.

VPN: More than just digital security & privacy

VPNs go well with TV, movies, and live sports. You can access international versions of Netflix, tune into free sports overseas, and much more. Check out our roundup of the best streaming services if you're looking for something to watch. NFL fans armed with a new VPN should take a look at our free NFL live stream guide, too.

If unlocking international streaming is one of your main reasons for picking up a VPN deal, then all of the above VPNs we've selected have solid records for apps like Netflix, Max, Stan and more. If you're into live sports streaming, I'd give the edge to ExpressVPN over the others as it does a better job with particularly long-distance streaming (like UK to Australia) of live sports events that are shown for free on Australian channels like 9Now and 7+ for cricket and NFL.

The other VPN apps seem to need to buffer more often on those channels for some reason, although Australian on-demand apps like Stan seem to be fine on all of these VPNs - Stan and a VPN is a great way to catch every match of the Champions League live streams by the way.

Looking for the latest offers on movie and TV apps? Take a look at Lillian's roundup of the best streaming deals.